We are allowed to take our daily exercise on the greenway and do small tasks like a litter pick or snipping back. Only two people at a time and social distancing must be observed.

Today we just snipped back a load of tree saplings and made habitat piles with what we removed.

Thinning these saplings stops dense scrub forming and a tangle of leggy trees that are all competing for the same space. It also allows the trees that are left to reach maturity.

We will be cutting areas on a three to five year rotational basis.

As you can see, it really opens up the path so more sunlight will hit the ground and a more diverse selection of wildflowers will grow. It also feels less hemmed in and intimidating.

Next week we will snip back the ivy to create patches of bare earth. Then we will move onto another block further down the path and do the same again.

Paul